Chapter 139: How Can I Believe You Will Love Me Forever

They were walking to the hospital.

From the residential compound to the hospital, following Xichun Road, it only took fifteen minutes on foot.

The surroundings were beautifully landscaped. The West Grand Playground’s sunlit lawn glistened invitingly, tempting one to roll around on it.

Along both sides of the road, rows upon rows of willow and poplar trees stood so orderly it seemed as if they had undergone military-style management.

Hand in hand, they strolled beneath the shade of the trees. The low red-brick buildings lining the street silently testified to the land’s long and storied history.

Bian Yang took the initiative to speak to her. “When I was a kid, my parents were too busy to take care of me, so they just tossed me into school. Whenever another family had a meal, I’d go eat with them. Now, sticking close to your boyfriend, you’ve hit the jackpot. No need for meal cards; when it’s mealtime, we can go door to door freeloading food and drinks. No problem at all.”

A few willow leaves twirled down, landing on the boy’s shoulder.

Tang Yu reached out to brush them away, laughing softly, “So you grew up eating at other people’s tables, huh?”

Bian Yang’s fingertip gently rubbed her palm. “What, are you looking down on me now?”

“Not at all,” Tang Yu said. “But from now on, you won’t have to go door to door for meals. The residential compound isn’t far from the teaching building. Whatever you want to eat, I can cook it for you every day.”

Bian Yang curved his lips. “Hey, so sweet of you.”

Tang Yu rolled her eyes. “Are you coming or not?”

“Of course, I’m coming,” Bian Yang’s lazy tone couldn’t hide the smile tugging at his lips. “If my girlfriend wants to win over my stomach, I have to cooperate obediently. But I’m a picky eater; once I get used to someone’s cooking, I’ll have to eat it for life.”

Tang Yu pretended not to understand. “Eat or don’t eat, your choice.”

“Hey, Tang Xiaoyu, shouldn’t you be saying something like, ‘Bian Yang, don’t worry, I want to hold onto you forever’ at a time like this?”

Seeing her indifferent, Bian Yang clicked his tongue softly. “You’re not romantic at all.” Straight girls never understood him.

Tang Yu: “…”

Bian Yang was getting into it. “Say it once for me. Just repeat what you said just now.”

She looked at him quietly. “I heard the law department is very busy; you might not have time to cook. Maybe it’s better to eat at the cafeteria from now on.”

“Already giving up?” He snorted lightly but still held her hand. “If you quit halfway like this, how can I believe you’ll love me forever?”

From this angle, the boy’s delicate profile was full of doubt.

Tang Yu lowered her head, smiling inwardly.

Bian Yang needed coaxing, and he was especially susceptible to sweet talk.

He liked hearing flattering words, liked when the girl took the initiative, and most of all, liked when she acted coy with him.

But Tang Yu’s nature was such that she rarely acted coy—only when she’d done something wrong would she show weakness.

Bian Yang wanted to see her act coy, but also feared she’d actually make a mistake… so all he could do was stare helplessly and force her to coax him this way.

Tang Yu shook his hand gently, her body warmed through by the sun, as if her bones were ablaze.

She said, “On such a beautiful day, being with someone you like must be a blessing from heaven.”

Her tone was soft and light, as if it could slip straight into his heart.

***

That simple, natural sentence smoothed his heart like an iron pressing gently.

Bian Yang lifted his lips, casting aside her earlier half-heartedness, reaching out to brush the strands of hair from her forehead. “Strolling with a beautiful girl on such a fine day really isn’t so bad.”

Hearing this, Tang Yu imitated the words he had said in the residential compound and slowly said, “Bian Yang, you agreed to be with me—could it be you’re just after my looks?”

She meant to make him reflect on how unreasonable that was.

Unexpectedly, he raised an eyebrow, utterly unfazed, and with a pleased grin said, “Yes, I’m that shallow. Tang Xiaoyu, you’re stunning to death. This beauty is a bargain for me.”

Tang Yu burst out laughing in mock annoyance.

Yet, deep down, she was quite happy, unable to find a word to retort.

Who wouldn’t want to be praised by their boyfriend?

——

The hospital conducted a full examination on the elderly couple. Grandpa was in decent shape, just some hypertension that could be managed with timely medication.

Grandma’s condition was more serious. Years ago, due to the family’s poor circumstances, she missed the best treatment window. Now her legs were beginning to atrophy.

Even a young, healthy person would struggle with the relentless, day-after-day, year-after-year rehabilitation after surgery. For the elderly, it had become a kind of torment. Moreover, the doctors warned that rehabilitation might not guarantee she would be able to stand and walk normally again.

So Tang Yu left the decision to Grandma.

But Grandma still chose to have the surgery.

She said that no matter what, in this lifetime, she must let her granddaughter and Bian Yang taste a meal she cooked with her own hands.

Outside the operating room, Tang Yu, Bian Yang, and Grandpa sat on a bench waiting.

Six hours later, when the operating room door finally opened and the doctor announced the surgery was successful, Tang Yu covered her mouth and bowed her head, crying uncontrollably.

Grandpa was so moved he could hardly speak, wiping away tears and repeatedly thanking the doctor while holding his hand.

After surgery, Grandma had to be observed in the ICU for two days for any postoperative reactions; then she could be transferred to a regular ward for recovery.

Bian Yang and Grandpa stayed in the ward, talking with Grandma, while Teacher Shen called her. Tang Yu went to the garden below the hospital building to answer the phone.

A little girl on the other end was crying violently. She had tripped on a stone while running and scraped her palm.

After talking with the teacher, Tang Yu hung up quickly and hurried over to help her up.

The girl looked about seven or eight, extremely thin, her eye sockets sunken so deeply that her large eyes seemed even more prominent. She wore a hospital gown.

When Tang Yu helped her arm, she felt it was almost bony and rough.

The girl kept crying, calling out for “Mama Qi,” clearly lost.

Tang Yu dusted off her clothes and pulled out some tissue to wipe the dirt from her hand.

The scraped skin was bleeding. She covered it gently with a clean tissue. “Don’t cry, don’t cry.” She softly wiped away the girl’s tears.

“Can’t find your mom? How about I help you look for her?”

“Sis, they all say I killed Mama Qi! I don’t believe it. Mama Qi is so strong; she wouldn’t die!”

Her tears fell in big drops, her eyes red and swollen. “Sis, will you take me to find Mama Qi?”

Tang Yu didn’t quite understand, so she squatted before her, wiped her tears, and asked thoughtfully, “Then tell me, what does your Mama Qi look like?”

The girl rubbed her eyes. “Mama Qi is very pretty, like someone from TV. She’s the prettiest here. Everyone else is afraid of me and won’t play with me, but Mama Qi plays string braids with me and even teaches me chess. But she’s disappeared. I’ve been looking for her everywhere and can’t find her…”

Mama Qi was someone very important to her.

Her sobs shook her shoulders. “She must be hiding, waiting for me to find her. She wouldn’t die! Those people are lying to me!”

“Sis, will you take me to find her?”

Her tear-streaked eyes pleaded earnestly. “Mama Qi promised to bring me little cakes, to play chess with me, and said she’d give me a rose when the roses downstairs bloomed. But the flowers have bloomed, and she still hasn’t come to find me.”

Her tears streamed even more, soaking the tissue.

“Mama Qi never breaks her promises. She always does what she says. Sis, please take me to find her. I really miss Mama Qi…”

The girl’s sobs grew hoarser. Tang Yu pulled her close in an embrace, gently soothing her.

After a long while, when the girl’s mood had calmed somewhat, Tang Yu took her hand and prepared to ask the hospital security about her case.

At that moment, a female doctor and a man rushed over. The man snatched the girl away.

Seeing the blood on the girl’s hand, the doctor’s eyes filled with alarm. She immediately pulled Tang Yu aside.

Tang Yu stumbled as she was pulled along. Behind her, the girl’s cries grew louder and more frantic.

Turning back, she saw the man forcibly carry the girl away, ignoring her struggles and cries.

“Wait, doctor, what are you doing?”

Tang Yu was abruptly taken into a virus isolation room.

The doctor didn’t answer her question but furrowed her brow and, wearing protective gloves, quickly washed the area where Tang Yu had contact with the blood under running water. She scrubbed it with soap several times, then, behind her mask, asked sternly, “Do you have any wounds on your body?”

Tang Yu was startled and shook her head. “No.”

“Besides touching the blood with your hands, did you come into contact with it anywhere else?”

Tang Yu looked at her hands and shook her head. “No.”

“Did you rub your eyes with your hands?”

“No.”

Still, to be absolutely safe, the doctor handed her a white pill. “Take this.”

Tang Yu took it, puzzled. “What is this?”

“An HIV post-exposure prophylaxis drug.”